07 Feb How a marketer learned empathy: In conversation with…Jay Munro
Image description: Jay is smiling. He has a light brown coloured beard and is wearing air pods. In the background is a filled bookshelf.
My search to talk with proudly neurodivergent individuals led me to Jay Munro. Jay is a marketer and willingly shares his experiences as an autistic person so he can help other neurodivergent people navigating the employment landscape.
Jay was labelled the ‘naughty child’ in primary school. Despite his academic gift, he struggled with interpersonal relationships and eventually relied on his network to find employment opportunities.
Acutely self-aware and motivated to ‘figure it out’, Jay sought ways to solve problems through out-of- the-box ideas.
For example, Jay has always struggled with empathy and physical touch. To help him understand empathy and the importance of human connection, he chose to work at an aged care home. This environment taught him the role of therapeutic human touch – something that he felt was outside his comfort zone.
Jay describes himself as a systematic thinker who can connect individual elements naturally and instantaneously. Jay does not describe himself as creative, rather he uses his very strong muscle memory to collect creative crumbs such as slogans and brand mascots.
Do you know the origins of how Santa became red, for example?
He watches other people’s behaviour and builds a ‘database’ of earlier experiences to help him predict behaviour when he meets new people or finds himself in new situations.
Jay is passionate about hiring diverse talent and advocates for the underemployed and unemployed.
I asked Jay what he would advise organisational leaders who were interested in neurodiversity in the workplace:
- Don’t expect eye contact in interviews – this can be uncomfortable for many.
- Use more prompts and guides when interviewing – the interview should not be a test but rather a two-way dialogue
- Recognise that honesty is a valuable trait
- Seek to understand neurodivergent employees’ needs and how the environment can be adapted to meet those needs
- invite neurodivergence in: there are many people who will happily share their lived experience.
#neurodiversity #neurodiversityatwork #autismawareness #talent